Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-11-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that the main environmental problem of our time is the loss of particular species of plants and animals. Others say that there are more important environmental problems. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 7.0)

In the Modern era, a popular opinion is that extinction of specific plant and animal species is the major environmental crisis while some believe that there are other environmental crisis much more significant than this.

To begin with, extinction of organisms is quite inevitable to the environment as our ecosystem is highly dependent on a chain of organisms. It is a considerable threat to biodiversity and nature. Plants and animals maintain a significant balance in the ecosystem. They have a crucial contribution to our environment too.

For instance, trees absorb excessive environmental carbon dioxide to balance its proportion in the air. Moreover, trees also contribute to water cycle through transpiration and control flooding. This proves their pivotal role in the environment. Similarly, variety of animal species help to maintain a balance in natural food chains by predation and symbiosis. For example, if deer population declines it will pose serious threats to lion population which is its greatest consumer, ultimately, disrupting natural balance.

On the other hand, many experts suggest that there are other environmental hazards that require greater attention than this. A compelling reason for this might be the fact that pollution is proving more hostile to the environment than extinction and endangerment of organisms. Pollution has resulted in other adverse effects on environment which include abrupt climate change, global warming , melting of glaciers and frequent floods. This forces environmentalists and experts to focus on eradication and reduction of pollution first. They also believe that extinction of species is also linked to unfavourable climates resulting from abrupt climate changes caused by pollution. For instance, in Pakistan houbara bustards are near to extinction due to extremely hot and dry climate.

As far as I am concerned, pollution is the root cause of all other environmental crisis and should be addressed as a priority by the environmentalists and the authorities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You address both views and state a clear position: species loss threatens ecological balance, while pollution deserves priority because it drives wider environmental damage. The examples of trees’ roles in carbon absorption and water cycles, and the link between deer and lion populations, help extend the first view; the Pakistan houbara bustard example supports the second. This gives the response relevant development across the task. Some claims, however, are broad rather than fully explained—for example, calling pollution “the root cause of all other environmental crisis” overstates its role, and the final opinion could explain more precisely why pollution should take priority over direct conservation measures. Qualifying this claim and developing the comparison would make the argument more fully supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response has a clear overall progression: it introduces the debate, explains the case for protecting species, presents the alternative view, and ends with your opinion. Paragraphing supports this structure, and signposts such as “To begin with,” “On the other hand,” and “As far as I am concerned” make the direction of the argument easy to follow. Ideas within paragraphs are generally linked logically, particularly the sequence from pollution to climate effects and species decline. Some connections are more mechanical or repetitive, however, with repeated references to “environment” and “extinction,” and “This proves their pivotal role” refers broadly to the preceding examples. More varied referencing and clearer links between evidence and the central comparison would make cohesion more flexible.

Lexical Resource: Band 7.0

You use a sufficient range of topic vocabulary and show some awareness of formal academic style. Phrases such as “biodiversity,” “natural food chains,” “transpiration,” “predation,” and “abrupt climate change” help express relevant environmental ideas precisely. There are also occasional collocation or word-choice problems that reduce naturalness: “extinction of organisms is quite inevitable to the environment” does not clearly express the intended threat, and “eradication and reduction of pollution” is awkward. “Environmental crisis” is also repeated, and “greatest consumer” is less precise than a term such as “main predator” in this context. Aim to use collocations that are natural in environmental writing and vary repeated terms, while retaining the strong subject-specific vocabulary already present.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You attempt a useful mix of simple and complex sentences, including subordinate clauses and cause-and-effect structures: “This forces environmentalists and experts to focus…” and “They also believe that extinction of species is also linked…” show an effort to express relationships between ideas. Meaning remains clear overall, but some grammatical errors persist. For example, “there are other environmental crisis” needs plural agreement, and “trees…balance its proportion” has unclear pronoun reference and agreement. The sentence beginning “For example, if deer population declines” also needs an article before “deer population.” Punctuation and spacing are inconsistent, including spaces before commas and full stops. More careful checking of articles, plurals, pronoun reference, and punctuation would improve accuracy while preserving your sentence variety.

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